After such a statement success against Irish Cup favourites Glentoran, you’d expect a scene of mad celebration inside Bangor’s changing room, full of joyous noise as they savour every second of a shock upset, but instead there was this sense of calm and tranquillity – almost wondering what all the fuss is about.

That’s testament to the winning mentality instilled at Clandeboye Park by Lee Feeney since his appointment in 2020 with one of his first messages delivered at the County Down club “I want to make winning normal”.

They’ve done plenty of it in recent years, lifting the Premier Intermediate League title before coming within touching distance of securing back-to-back promotions last term, falling agonisingly short of booking their Premiership return on the final weekend.

However, they swiftly put that disappointment behind them and are now in pole position to seal the top-flight berth they’ve dreamed of since new life was breathed back into one of Northern Ireland’s sleeping giants, currently holding an eight-point advantage at the Championship’s summit.

placeholder image — After winning the Steel & Sons Cup in 2022, Lee Feeney is now hoping to lead Bangor to Irish Cup glory. (Photo by Stephen Hamilton/Presseye)

It was that experience which meant Bangor entered last month’s Irish Cup quarter-final showdown against the Glens with expectation and genuine belief – it’s fair to say those weren’t emotions shared with the outside world, but more importantly, they were felt strongly inside the walls of the Seasiders’ changing room.

While their 3-1 triumph sparked by a first half blitz which has set up Saturday’s last-four clash with Dungannon Swifts raised eyebrows around the country, it was business as usual for Feeney.

"We weren't surprised by our performance because we'd been playing well, scoring goals and keeping clean sheets, so we weren't overly surprised that we qualified,” he said. “We believe in ourselves and that's the truth.

"We weren't shocked at it...we never really celebrated, went silly or went into the changing room screaming and shouting, we did what we do every game which is shake hands, clap the crowd and talk about the game and what's ahead of us.

"There was no celebration on our part because we weren't surprised. We were obviously delighted to get through but we knew we had a chance with the way we were playing.

"We've played a lot of teams and you can hear them in the changing room beside us celebrating draws or wins and going mad, thumping the changing room door, and there's nothing wrong with that, fair enough, but I wouldn't like us doing that.

"You're only one week away from sitting with your head in your hands, so we try and stay grounded the whole time. You can start celebrating when you have silverware in your hands."

Bangor have a rich history having won the Irish Cup in 1992/93, but they’ve also endured recent struggles, temporarily dropping out of the Irish League pyramid and into the Ballymena & Provincial League.

They are once again on the cusp of swapping fixtures against the likes of Desertmartin, Cookstown Youth and Dunloy for consistent clashes with Linfield, Glentoran and Cliftonville, and Feeney is delighted to repay the faith shown by their supporters.

"When I first took over the job, the chairman gave me an ambitious five-year programme to get us back into the Premiership,” he said. “We've been making strides every year, finishing second in the PIL, then we won it.

"We came third last year and I felt we were unlucky to not make the play-off, now we're focusing on going better than that.

"The fans have been through a lot and we've been able to give them a lot back recently with challenging for leagues and cups.

"They deserve this. Every supporter deserves to see their team being successful because they all have fans that give everything, commit, travel, so we're fortunate that we're able to thank them for that."

Feeney narrowly missed out on reaching an Irish Cup final as a player with Linfield, losing out to rivals Glentoran in the 1997/98 semi-finals, just months before the talented playmaker dubbed ‘Golden Child’ by David Jeffrey sealed a transfer to Scottish giants Rangers.

He’s well aware of the competition’s significance with hundreds of players starting out holding a Windsor Park dream in August before only one team is left standing, but it’s clear where Feeney’s priorities lie.

"It would be fantastic to get into the final, I would love it, but if Saturday is the only loss we have for the rest of this season I'll be happy,” he said. “We have the league to worry about and it means so much to the club so that's a priority.

"The Irish Cup semi-final is a free hit, we can go out, give it our all and we really feel like we have a chance.

"The Irish Cup final is something you'd always go down to the bar to watch with your mates if you weren't involved in it, you always went somewhere to watch the Irish Cup final.

"It's a big occasion for everyone involved with football in this country. You think about the amount of players and clubs that started in this competition from round one, everyone has an interest in it.

"It's great to be in the last-four and we aren't going to let it slip away here now. We'll give everything we can."

Another aspect of Saturday’s showdown with the high-flying Swifts which Feeney relishes is coming up against opposite number Rodney McAree, who he feels is one of the Irish League’s top bosses.

"Rodney is a top, top coach,” he added. “He has experience and he's a perfect fit for that club, it's his home and he's passionate about it.

"In my opinion Rod is one of the best in the country...he's one of those coaches you don't look forward to going up against because he can spot any chinks in your armour! I'm looking forward to going head-to-head with him in what could be a game of chess."